A Swiss woman being treated for Ebola in Abuja may have contracted the virus during a recent trip to Uganda, despite not having visited the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Switzerland’s Foreign Ministry has said.
The ministry disclosed on Friday, October 23, that the woman, who is married to a staff member of the Swiss embassy in Abuja, travelled to Uganda with her husband about two weeks before her diagnosis.
It said neither of them had visited the DRC, where an outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola is ongoing, leaving the precise source of the woman’s infection under investigation.
The woman, who is showing symptoms, has reportedly been receiving treatment at a private hospital in Abuja for about a week. Her husband has been placed in isolation, although he has not developed symptoms.
The Swiss ministry’s statement contradicts earlier information from Ugandan authorities indicating that the woman had travelled to eastern DRC, raising questions about where she was exposed to the virus.
Nigeria announced its first recorded Ebola case in more than a decade earlier this week, after the woman arrived in Abuja from Uganda on October
Health authorities have begun identifying and monitoring people who may have come into contact with the patient to reduce the risk of further transmission.
The infection was identified as the Bundibugyo strain, for which no approved vaccine or specific treatment is currently available.
Investigations are continuing to establish where the woman contracted the virus and whether her case is connected to other infections reported in the region.
